[Samuel Brookes]

Samuel Brookes
Bolt Student
Party:

It was that time of year again. His birthday. Samuel had never really looked forward to it- with seven older siblings, presents normally consisted of the cheapest things his family could find, and he very rarely saw anything of his parents.

This year though, his family had spent more than usual. His gifts consisted of a few cheap (and probably second-hand) Pokémon books, a drawing of Striker and Rune his more artistic sister had finished, a new bag, a very cheap set of binoculars and a cheap camera. One of his older brothers had sent a pair of inflatable armbands, probably as a joke about Samuel's inability to swim.

Samuel gazed at the presents with a small, but also sad smile. At least they had tried, and the card they had sent- with a message written by each member of his family- made it clear they still cared even if he wasn't there. But the presents and card made him feel homesick. He still missed his family, especially his siblings. But then, he supposed most students probably did, at some point or another.

[Lilith Sinclaire]

A cheerful hum escaped from Lilith's mouth as the raven-haired female traveled towards the Bolt Dorm. She had remember that today was Samuel's birthday. Although, she had not known Samuel for a long time she still consider him to be a good friend. He was a few years younger than her and she kind of viewed him as a younger brother at times. "I really hope that Samuel will like his gifts." She spoke slowly as she glanced down at the homemade card resting against a beautifully decorated gift box. Inside, Samuel would find a rather cool flask with small pictures of some of his favorite Pokemon decorating it. She figured that since Samuel enjoyed exploring a like a flask would be a nice gift for him. One could never have too much water while traveling. 

After she glanced down at the gifts, she turned her attention towards the small Eevee walking alongside her. A soft mew escaped from the Eevee's mouth as she glanced up at her trainer. "You're right Amaris. I'm sure that he'll like it, too." She smiled back at her Pokemon as the two of them continued to move towards the Bolt Dorm. A few more minutes passed and the duo soon found themselves wondering inside of the massive dorm, looking for their dear friend. Luckily, it didn't take them too long to find him roaming around in the living area. "Samuel! Hi! Happy Birthday!" She beamed extending her hand out a bit in order to hand over the gifts. "I hope you like them." She added with another soft smile.

---

[Finley Morrow]

The things one hears through the grapevine! Yesterday Finley happened across the information that fellow Bolt student Samuel was having his birthday. This was not the kind of tip one could just let lie. Previous evening spent out on town purchasing the right ingredients, this morning dedicated to baking; after thirty minutes in the oven, Finley’s work was coming to fruition. He could smell it.

Finley sucked at giving gifts. Sometimes he could pull it off, with people he knew well and who had said “this is exactly what I want”. Usually buying gifts resulted in an hour of indecisive “am I sure they’ll like this, or maybe they’ll like this better”, all culminating into the purchase of a gift card. What he didn’t suck at was baking. Almost two years of training under a professional chef had given its rewards, and when he pulled the chocolate cake out of the oven, Finley knew he’d made the right call.

Brushing his slightly long blond hair off his forehead, Finley smiled at his creation. One bowl of frosting from the fridge and a spreading knife later, the cake was covered in a layer of chocolate to top off the other chocolate. Lastly, he took some yellow icing and a pipet bag and wrote “Happy Birthday Samuel” on the top. He even managed to spell Samuel’s name right.

Apron, having completed its job of protecting his while uniform, was left on a chair to be cleaned up later. The cake on a plate with a knife and some paper plates in tow, Finley stepped out of his dorm and strode towards the common area. Lo and behold, his intuition had been right. There was Samuel, as well as who he recognized as Lilith.

“I brought cake!” He said loudly and cheerfully. Trotting over, he said a quick “Hello, Lilith,” to the other current attendee and placed the sweet on the nearest suitable table, situating the plates and knife beside it. Finley stepped back and grinned at the other boy. “Happy birthday, Samuel! Feel like you’ve grown this year?”

[Samuel Brookes]

Samuel Brookes
Bolt Student
Party:

Samuel was drawn out of his moping by a familiar voice, and he hastily hid the armbands from view. Had he known his brother would send them, he would have opened his presents in his room out of sight. Turning, a surprised grin spread across his face as he saw Lilith stood there, soon joined by Finley. Their greeting surprised him. He didn't remember telling anyone about it being his birthday- but then, this was a school, and such knowledge had a way of getting around schools at times.

"Thanks!" he said brightly- perhaps slightly too brightly, as it was a little forced- before responding to Finley's question. "Not really," he laughed, seeing the question as a joke. After all, he was small for his age- a trait that ran in his family. His nineteen year old sister was an inch shorter than he was. Questions about his height were often considered to be jokes.

Next, he took the box from Lilith. He took a few moments to admire the decorated box- had Lilith decorated it herself?- and the card before he opened the present. His eyes lit up as he saw the flask. "You didn't have to get me anything!" he exclaimed, feeling slightly guilty- when Lilith's birthday came around, he wasn't sure he'd be able to afford a present, or even know what to get her. "Thank you."

Now for the cake Finley had brought. It looked delicious. "This must have taken ages," he said, slightly envious of Finley's baking skills. Samuel's skills in the kitchen were non-existent- he was more likely to start a fire than successfully bake a cake.


(Dedenne, Blitzle, Vulpix egg hatch counts- 1/5)

[Shane Norwood]

Birthdays are fun, especially when you can celebrate them with friends. Apparently, today just so happened to be that special day for a certain Bolt student. No, it's not Shane mind you. Rather, it was that of a younger boy within that same dorm. In any case, it was a reason to celebrate something. Granted, Shane had absolutely no prior knowledge of this. Then again, word did have its own way of getting passed around like a hot potato. And so it was no question that pro-trainer-in-the-making would want to join in on the festivities.

Shane, along with his best buddy and newly evolved Mickey the shiny Raichu, got up early this morning to do a bit of shopping in the city. What's a good birthday party without refreshments anyway? Just about everything under the sun that he could think of, he felt that he had to get. Juices, sodas, and a wide variety of snacks and knick knacks. It all turned out to be a bit much for he and Mickey to carry all on their own for the trip back to the dorm. So he'd call on the strength of his Lucario, Lito, for assistance.

On the way back to his room with the refreshments, he overheard some commotion going on in the living room already. Did the party start without him!? He figured it would, he had been out for a while after all. No matter. This only meant that he could take his time in showering and dressing himself while Mickey and Lito waited impatiently with all of that junk in their hands.

After nearly forty-five minutes of bathing and grooming - with much of the grooming seemingly pointless as of now - the trio made haste for the living area. Once there, the sound of 'cake' piqued the boy's interest even more. "Did somebody say cake!?" shouted the Kanto native upon finally joining the party with his two handy helpers, which featured all but three others. Finley, Lilith, and of course the apparent birthday boy himself, Samuel. "Sup guys! Sorry I'm late, I had to rush out and grab a few things...okay it's a lot of things, don't judge me. We've brought snacks for everyone!" And by 'we' he meant himself, his Raichu and the battle-tested Lucario of course.

After setting the all the refreshments aside, Shane and Mickey went around to formally greet everyone, while Lito took refuge in a corner like an innocent wallflower. It was rather easy to be under the impression that he was disinterested in these sorts of gatherings. He'd rather be fighting than partying. "Happy birthday buddy!"

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Charmander Hatch Count: 5 of 5